The Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association (SLWJA) respectfully requests all print, electronic, and digital media organisations to broadcast and publish this special media release to inform the public and the media community.

2026-06-10 Press release


The citizens of Sri Lanka exercised their sovereign franchise to elect the current rulers into power with the expectation that they would manage the administration of the state sensibly and responsibly. However, the Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association (SLWJA) vehemently condemns and rejects the government's blatant attempts to suppress its citizens by arbitrarily abusing the political authority vested in them.
Today, we witness a continuous wave of state suppression sweeping across Sri Lanka, systematically strangling both media freedom and fundamental civic rights. This grim reality does not merely threaten professional journalists; it profoundly destabilizes the ordinary citizen. Living under an unbearable blanket of intimidation, the public now faces a severe socio-political crisis that threatens the very fabric of our democracy.

  1. NPP National List MP’s Threats to a BBC Journalist and Public Officials
    In a recent meeting of the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus, National People’s Power (NPP) National List MP Lakmali Hemachandra reportedly castigated officials of the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA). Her outrage was directed at how these officials testified in court against the suspect and defended the ongoing police investigation in a high-profile case involving the alleged abuse of a minor, connected to the notorious monk Pllegama Hemaratne Thero.
  2. When a journalist from the BBC Sinhala Service sought clarification from MP Lakmali Hemachandra regarding these discussions, she chose to weaponize her position. Following the publication of the report detailing her response, the MP took to her social media account to threaten the BBC journalist with a "Parliamentary Privilege Issue."
  3. The SLWJA expresses its profound displeasure and outright condemnation of MP Lakmali Hemachandra and the NPP government for disrupting the duties of child protection officials and threatening a journalist. We believe this behavior is a severe assault on democracy, designed to suppress the public’s right to information. It is deeply unacceptable that a public representative like Lakmali Hemachandra—who was not elected by popular vote but entered parliament comfortably through the National List—attempts to blindfold the public. No political leader or representative possesses the moral or legal authority to violate press freedom or deny citizens access to the truth.
  4. This incident is a textbook example of how politicians routinely use the "Parliamentary Privileges Act"as a shield to hide their misconduct, escape public scrutiny, and intimidate journalists. Therefore, the SLWJA declares that the time has critically come to completely abolish the Parliamentary Privileges Act to permanently end these undemocratic political threats.
  6. Police Harassment and Intimidation of Journalist Sampath Samarakoon
  7. Compounding this toxic political environment, the government is increasingly relying on the police force to execute its heavy-handed crackdown on civil society.
  8. Yesterday (June 9), Sampath Samarakoon, a professional journalist and the Editor of the Vikalpa website, was summoned to the Mount Lavinia Police Station to provide a statement regarding an ongoing inquiry stemming from a prior incident on May 9, 2026. While recording his statement, he was subjected to a grueling interrogation designed to inflict severe psychological distress. The SLWJA registers its strongest protest against the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Police Department for this state-sponsored harassment.
  9. This psychological torment follows a physical violation that took place on May 9, 2026, in Ratmalana, where Mr. Samarakoon was targeted in an arbitrary and humiliating street search by two plainclothes police officers arriving in a police three-wheeler (Registration No: ABV 2568).
    While Mr. Samarakoon was merely standing on the roadside waiting for transport, these officers searched him. Finding absolutely nothing illegal or suspicious in his possession, one officer unlawfully ordered him to "open your mouth," proceeding to carry out a degrading physical examination of his oral cavity without any medical or legal basis. This act is a direct, flagrant violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed to every citizen under the Constitution of Sri Lanka.
  10. We express our absolute revulsion at the threats, intimidation, and mental harassment inflicted upon Sampath Samarakoon, both as a journalist and a citizen. We demand that the IGP immediately launch a formal, expedited investigation into the conduct of the officers involved.
    The current administration is systematically abusing repressive regulations and police powers to silence critical voices and bury the truths that journalists expose to the nation.
  11. The Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association (SLWJA) reiterates its unwavering commitment to stand unconditionally at the frontlines to defend media freedom and civic rights. We earnestly call upon all citizens of Sri Lanka to unite, stand firm, and fiercely protect their constitutional rights against the government's dangerous trajectory toward building an authoritarian police state.

Ranga Bandaranayake Mithun Jayawardhana
President General Secretary